Sports Briefs

Men’s Basketball

VCU (11-5, 4-1) was 7-2 over the holiday break, with wins over Western Michigan, William and Mary, Richmond, Akron, Hampton, UNC Wilmington and Drexel.

VCU kicked off the holiday with a 79-62 win over Western Michigan at the Siegel Center. Senior Eric Maynor (Raeford, N.C./Westover) scored 29 points and had 8 assists. Sophomore Joey Rodriguez (Oviedo, Fla./Lake Howell) and junior Kirill Pishchalnikov (Maykop, Russia/MGGTK AGU) scored 17 and 15, respectively. Two days later, the Rams opened the conference schedule with a 66-50 victory over William and Mary, avenging last year’s loss in the second round of the CAA tournament. Following their first conference win of the season, VCU recorded a 77-76 win at Richmond in the Black and Blue Classic, and a 73-69 home victory over Akron. On Dec. 20, VCU headed to Oklahoma City to face then fourth-ranked Oklahoma. Thanks to red-hot shooting the Sooners were able to down the Rams, 81-70. After the loss to Oklahoma, the Rams closed out 2008 with a 59-54 win over the Hampton Pirates at the Siegel Center. Unfortunately, 2009 would not start well for the Rams. In their second conference game of the season, they were upset by the Delaware Blue Hens, 81-79. After the disappointing loss the Rams returned to the hardwood with a flourish. It began with an 88-59 trouncing of UNC Wilmington and then a 75-46 win at Drexel. Maynor is averaging 22.0 points per game to lead the CAA. The Rams next game is Wednesday at Towson.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Over the break, the women’s basketball team went 7-1. On Dec. 7, the Rams beat Georgetown 71-61. In the game Kita Waller (Gainesville, Ga./Gainesville) scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds. On Dec. 15, the Rams beat Morgan State 71-43. Radoslava Bachvarova (Varna, Bulgaria/Daytona Beach C.C.) led all Rams with 20 points. On Dec. 19, VCU beat Radford 74-51. Quanitra Hollingsworth (Chesapeake/Great Bridge) and Waller combined for 41 points. Hollingsworth scored 21 points while Waller added 20. In a 80-44 victory over North Carolina Central on Dec. 21, Hollingsworth and D’Andra Moss (Atlanta/Norcross) tallied double-doubles. Hollingsworth had 19 points and 13 rebounds while Moss scored 15 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. On Dec. 28, the Rams beat Longwood 79-49. In the victory, Waller, Bachvarova, La’Tavia Rorie (Charlotte, N.C./Harding University HS) and Jessica Taylor (Northumberland/Woodbridge) all scored 10 points. On Dec. 30, the Rams squeaked by American, 67-63. Hollingsworth tallied another double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Rorie led all Rams with 17 points. The Rams lost their first game of the new year in a 69-68 loss at Old Dominion on Jan. 5. Hollingsworth led the Rams in points and rebounds as she scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the loss. On Jan. 8, the Rams defeated George Mason 67-43. Rorie scored a game-high 17 points. The Rams next play at James Madison on Thursday.

BASEBALL

Over the break, the baseball team landed five players during the early signing period. Pitchers Blake Hauser, Kyle Haynes, Ryan Farrar, Derrick Raybon and infielder Nick Kime have committed to the Rams. Hauser, from Midlothian, batted .450 and earned four wins last season for Manchester. He also earned All-Metro Team, First Team All-District, First Team All-Region and Second Team All-State honors. Haynes, from Stafford, went 5-2 with a 2.07 ERA. Farrar, from Mechanicsville, won six games and posted a 1.13 ERA for Atlee High School. Raybon, from Cayce, S.C., won six games and recorded a save for his high school, USC Sumter. Kime, from Stafford, batted .355 while hitting 10 home runs for Mountain View High School.

MEN’S SOCCER

Seniors Dirk Dittrich (Stuttgart, Germany/Quenstedt-Gymnasium) and Andrew Dykstra (Woodbridge/Osbourn Park) earned spots on the NSCAA/Adidas Scholar All-East squad. Dittrich earned a place on the first team while Dykstra made the third team. Dittrich also was named to the NSCAA/Adidas All-South Atlantic Region Third Team.

MEN’S TENNIS

Fourth-year assistant coach Romain Ambert won his third consecutive SMARTBOX Virginia State Indoor Championship at the Country Club of Virginia. Ambert defeated Carl Clark 6-0, 7-6 (7-4) to win the title and $1,000.

MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD

At the Navy Invitational on Dec. 5, Olympian Manuel Reynaert (Saint-Pol-sur-Mer, France) broke a 13-year old record in the 60-meter dash. The sophomore ran a 6.78, breaking the previous record of 6.82. Reynaet then followed that performance with a fourth-place showing in the 200-meter dash. Sophomore Brian Wallace (Portsmouth/I.C. Norcom) placed second in the long jump with a jump of 23-3 1/2 feet and triple jump with a jump of 46-2 feet. Sophomore Allan Moody (Woodbridge/Garfield) placed second in the high-jump with a jump of 6-3 3/4 . Freshman Chris Kourlesis (Richmond/J.R. Tucker) placed third in the triple jump with a jump of 45-8 feet. The Rams are back in action on Saturday, Jan. 17 at the Terrapin Invitational.

WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD

At the Christopher Newport Holiday Open on Dec. 6th, sophomore Quina Fortune (New Orleans, La./St. Mary’s Academy) finished second in the 200 meters with a time of 25.28 seconds. Senior Vernice Johnson (Mineral/Louisa) finished third in the triple jump at 37-6 1/2 feet. Freshman Heather DelaCruz (Williamsburg/Lafayette) placed third in the 3,000 meters with a time of 11:05.78. Freshman Kristine Bethune (King George) finished the 600 meters in third place with a time of 1:46.41. Senior Natalie Duncan (Alexandria, West Potomac) set a personal best in the shot put with a toss of 42-5 1/20 feet, which earned her fourth place. The team competes again on Saturday, Jan. 17 at the Navy Invitational.